


Interrupted

by kyanitedragon



Category: Tokyo Ghoul
Genre: Gen, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-28
Updated: 2020-12-28
Packaged: 2021-03-10 19:28:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,227
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28372407
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kyanitedragon/pseuds/kyanitedragon
Summary: Peace doesn’t mean there won’t be any issues. Coexistence and healing takes time, patience, and work.
Relationships: Kaneki Ken | Sasaki Haise & Nagachika Hideyoshi
Comments: 1
Kudos: 22





	Interrupted

“Hey, Touka-chan.” Hide greeted with a nod.

“Hey, Hide.” Touka replied with a smile.

“Is Kaneki here?” Hide waved around a manila folder, full of files from the TSC.

“Yeah, he’s upstairs.”

“Thanks!” Hide trotted over up the stairs.

It took some time to fix up :re after it was destroyed and burned by the CCG, but it was as good as new and back up and running. And just like before, it was a ghoul safe haven and the trusted meeting place of Kaneki and Touka and all their ghoul friends and allies. And now Hide was a part of that as well.

Hide opened the door, “Hey, Kaneki, I wanted to ask you—”

Hide froze and his blood ran cold.

Across from him, Kaneki was sitting at a table, eating human meat. His eye was activated, his face was smeared with blood, and he had a plate of raw, bloody meat.

Hide visibly flinched, jumping into the air, and then took a step back. 

“Uh. I, I um—” Hide stammered as his body started shaking. “S-sorry!”

He grabbed the door handle and slammed it shut, then spun around and set his back against the closed door for stability. He carefully eased himself down into a crouch.

_ What’s wrong with me? _

Kaneki was too frozen in shock to say or do anything. Only when the door slammed shut did Kaneki finally snap out of it.

_ Hide...!  _

He jumped to his feet, dropping his fork and instead snatching a napkin. He quickly licked his lips and wiped his face, then discarded the bloodied napkin on the table. He grabbed his eyepatch, slipped it on, and strode over to the door.

He reached for the handle, but froze.

He could smell Hide’s scent on the other side of the door.

_ He’s still here. He didn’t run off. _

“Hey, Hide.” Kaneki called out gently.

He could hear a light slam of shoes. Hide must have bolted upright onto his feet. “Kaneki...!” His tone sounded shaky and nervous. “I-I’ll go!”

“No!” Kaneki said quickly. “No, it’s okay.” He made sure to keep his tone gentle.

Kaneki sat down, leaning against the door.

“It’s okay.” Kaneki repeated.

He heard shuffling. It sounded like Hide sat back down again.

“It’s... just a natural reaction.” Kaneki began. “I’m not mad at you or anything.”

“...” Hide was silent, but Kaneki could sense he was still there.

“I walked in on a ghoul eating once too.” Kaneki said. “And I had about the same reaction as you. Well, worse, I guess. Cuz I was really rude about it.”

“...”

“I, like,  _ actually  _ screamed and ran off, scared out of my mind.” Kaneki chuckled a little. “It wasn’t that I was nervous of the ghoul. It just... startled me. I knew what they ate, but I just... never thought about it, y’know? Never actually saw it?”

“Yeah.” Hide whispered. Kaneki smiled.

_ At least he’s talking now. _

“It’s my fault I didn’t lock the door.” Kaneki said. Touka had been coming and going, otherwise he would have locked it.

“I should have knocked.” Hide said. “Sorry.”

“We’re both at fault. It’s okay.” Kaneki said. “I’m not mad.”

There was shuffling again. Hide was probably standing up. There was a long moment of silence, but Kaneki could still smell his scent lingering, so he knew Hide was still there.

“Can I... Can I come in?” Hide finally asked.

Kaneki rested a hand against his eyepatch, to check that it was there and secured. 

“Yeah.” He said. “Yeah, you can.” He scooted back so that the door could be opened. 

Slowly, the handle moved, and then the door opened. Hide stepped inside. Kaneki stayed where he was, sitting on the floor.

Hide examined him for a moment, and then he crouched down onto his knees.

“I’m sorry.” Hide said.

“I’m sorry, too.”

Hide’s eyes flickered from looking into Kaneki’s eyes, to his mouth, to the table behind him.

_ Shit, I forgot the meat is still there. _

But Hide didn’t say anything or show any signs of freaking out again.

“You, uh...” Hide began, tapping at his own face. “You have a little...”

“O-oh.” Kaneki slapped a hand to the left side of his face.

“Er, other side.” 

Kaneki switched sides. 

_ Meat? Blood? Where? Which? _

Hide huffed, and shifted closer. He brought his hand up, carefully wiping across Kaneki’s top lip, into the corner of his mouth, and then pulling away.

“There.” Hide said, holding up his thumb with a small blood streak on it.

“Sorry. I thought I...” Kaneki trailed off.

Hide continued holding his thumb up in the air in display.

“...What?” Kaneki asked.

Hide jiggled his hand.

Kaneki raised an eyebrow, not understanding.

“Lick it.”

“What?!” 

“Go ahead. It’s okay.”

Kaneki flickered his gaze between the blood on his finger and Hide’s eyes that were filled with determination.

Sighing, and knowing that Hide would just keep insisting until he did it, Kaneki reached out. He gently grabbed hold of Hide’s to hold his arm in place, and then leaned in and opened his mouth as little as he could. He stuck his tongue out, and quickly licked a stripe up Hide’s thumb. 

Then he quickly released Hide’s hand and pulled back, even as the taste of his skin lingered in his mouth.

Hide looked at his wet thumb. “Ew.” He reached out and wiped it on Kaneki’s clothes.

“You told me to do it!” Kaneki cried.

“I’m kidding.” Hide laughed. Then he turned serious again and gently grabbed Kaneki’s hands and squeezed. “It’s okay. It’s really okay. I know and I accept it, I just— Like you said, it startled me.”

“I know.” Kaneki nodded slowly. He truly did understand and sympathize.

Hide’s eyes crinkled, and he leaned in to give Kaneki a quick hug before he pulled back away.

“So, did you need something?”

“Oh, right!” Hide turned slightly and reached through the doorway to pick up something off the ground. “Some new files to drop off and go over.” Hide handed the folder to him.

Kaneki crossed his legs and opened the folder, glancing over the files quickly.

“Um, are you done?” Hide asked, gesturing to the table.

“Er.” Kaneki hesitated. He wanted to lie and let his meal go forgotten, but they had previously promised to be honest with each other from now on, and from the look Hide was giving him, he wanted him to be honest right now too. “I was not.”

Hide nodded. “Okay. I’ll let you finish, then.” He stood and brushed his clothes off.

Kaneki closed the folder and stood up too.

“Okay.”

“Sorry for interrupting. I’ll be downstairs. Take your time.” He backed up, stepping out of the room and grabbing the door handle.

“Alright. See you in a bit, then.”

“Oh, and Kaneki?”

“Yeah?”

“Thanks for being honest. I know it's hard for you to be open, but it means a lot.”

Kaneki nodded timidly. “And I know it's hard to be left in the dark. I think I just need time to adjust.”

“Of course. I do too, as you saw earlier. But I know we can both do it.” Hide replied, then moved to close the door again. “Well, enjoy your meal and I’ll see you in a few!”

Kaneki smiled at the simplicity and casualness of those words. He knew they could do it, too.


End file.
